Daniel chapter 12 is a continuation of chapter 11 which is a continuation of chapter 10. This prophecy needs to be read in its entirety for it to be properly understood. C. I. Scofield taught that this chapter is about the end of the world. He supported his ideas by separating the three chapters and forming an incorrect doctrine as a result. So the common Scofield teaching in today’s evangelical Christian churches is that the Jews will be back in Jerusalem killing animals at a rebuilt temple, that there will be a time of tribulation that has never been seen on this Earth since time began (verse 1), the length of the “tribulation period” will be 7 years divided into 3 1/2 years (verse 7), and that there will be a “rapture” (verses 2 and 3) removing the Church from the Earth and leaving the wicked which then begins a thousand year reign of some kind (verses 11-12). If you, the reader, believe C. I. Scofield to be correct, then skip Daniel 12, because this writer believes Scofield to be totally wrong and will present another way to interpret the verses below. This writer cannot accept the doctrine of a Jewish attorney who was also a criminal, who abandoned his Catholic wife and daughters, and who cheated people out of their finances as being capable of teaching the Word of God correctly. Sorry, but Jews do not believe Jesus was their promised Messiah and have no problem twisting Scripture to confuse the Christian believer. Scofield’s book was published by a Jewish publishing house, and that alone should make the Christian believer question the accuracy of his doctrine. Satan had/has many human vessels, and this writer believes that C. I. Scofield was one that has harmed the Christian church tremendously. You decide for yourself, but do the research before you decide whether this writer is wrong or right.
Verse 1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
Remember that angels are messengers of God and that Michael is an archangel or one of high rank in the angelic realm. The Hebrew word translated as “stand up” and “standeth” is “amad” and it means to watch over, to endure, to continue, or to attend upon. Notice that he is referred to as “the great prince”, the Hebrew word being “sar” which means prince, captain, chief, ruler or leader. He is the guardian over all of God’s people.
Application: God’s people are not a nation or a race, but are those people who have faith in God like Abraham the Syrian who was chosen by God to establish a physical nation. Not all the people living for centuries in the nation Israel were God’s people. God is not a racist. His people in Biblical times were those who obeyed what Moses taught and who trusted in Him. God’s people today are those in the Church who obey the commandments of Jesus (who kept the law of Moses perfectly and who fullfilled all prophecy) and who trust in the LORD which includes people from all tribes, tongues, and nations.
The main question here which will determine how the rest of the chapter is understood or interpreted is what was the “that time” that the angel talking to Daniel was referring to? So far Daniel had been shown the future of the nations Persian, Greece and then Rome. The prophecy goes no further than the rise of the one world empire of Rome. So it stands to reason that the “time” referred to in verse 1 above which deals with the children of future generations of Daniel’s people would be those living during the Roman occupation of the nation Israel. And when was there a time in which the children of Israel experienced “a time of trouble”? Notice that the angel stated “a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time.” In other words, since the beginning of the physical nation Israel up to this time being discussed with Daniel that was to be future, the trouble was to be the worst ever experienced by the children of Israel. The only historical event that qualifies was the siege of Jerusalem under the Roman general Titus. See Matthew 24:21-22. After Jerusalem fell in 70 AD the Jewish people were scattered and the nation fell as predicted by prophecy and by the LORD Jesus Christ. Who survived? The Jewish Christians who heeded the warning of Jesus. They were delivered because they were followers of the LORD by faith and so their names were “written in the book”. See Philippians 4:3, Revelation 3:5, Revelation 20:12 and 15, Revelation 21:27 and Revelation 22:19.
Application: Scofield said that the time of trouble in verse one above is the future world wide tribulation. Again, a simple, accurate reading of the verse shows that this cannot be true as the time of trouble is relating to Daniel’s people, not the people of the whole world. This is a time of trouble for the children of Israel and for them only. “Thy people” shall be delivered means Daniel’s people, plain and simple.
Verses 2-3 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.
Scripture refers to death as a sleep, so those being referred to in the verses above are those that have died or who will die. These verses relate to the “book” in verses 1 above. The angel is describing the purpose of the book which is referred to in the New Testament writings as the “book of life” or “the Lamb’s book of life”. The angel is just explaining that this book will determine which of the dead will have everlasting life in Heaven and which will not. As a result of this knowledge, the wise will be righteous and shine forth in the darkness of a sin filled world and if they are wise, they will turn others to righteousness. The best witnesses of the Gospel are those Christian believers who live a Christ-like life. They are easily seen by unbelievers, just as the stars are easily seen in the darkness of the night sky.
Verse 4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.
Why did God want the words sealed until the time of the end? Again, the angel could not have meant the end of the world as the Scofield doctrine teaches since believers have had the entire book of Daniel for centuries and the world has not ended, yet. So the end has to be the end of the physical nation Israel, just as the rest of the prophecy has been showing. The book of Daniel would not have been understandable prior to the Roman empire and the coming of the LORD Jesus Christ, so there was no point having it out there for people to read as they would not know what it meant. After the coming of the Messiah and the dispersion of the nation Israel, the whole book could be read and understood.
What happened after Jesus ascended into Heaven? The Gospel went forth into all the known world. “And the LORD said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.” Job 2:2 The Apostles did a lot of traveling. See the book of Acts in the New Testament. They went to and fro just like Satan did/does, but with the Gospel message, and this knowledge was increased in the known world. “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils, they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.” Mark 15: 15-20
Notice that the angel said knowledge would increase. Did he mean general knowledge as taught in the Scofield doctrine, or did he mean the knowledge of God? It would only make sense that the knowledge would be that of the Gospel (the Scriptures including the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ). General knowledge has been increasing ever since time began. There would have been no reason for the angel to stress an increase in general knowledge.
Application: God sent His Word throughout the whole world for all the people to hear or read about Him and about the gift of salvation that He offers through the blood of Jesus Christ. But according to Amos 8:11-12, “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, or a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: and they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.” That happened when for approximately 400 years before the birth of Jesus there were no prophets bringing forth the Word of God. There was silence. Then with the life and ministry of Jesus, the writers of the New Testament books once again brought forth the Word of God. Look around today’s cultures and societies and ask yourself if today there is not a famine in the land regarding the teaching and understanding of the Word.
Verses 5-6 Then I Daniel looked, and, behold, there stood other two, the one on this side of the bank of the river, and the other on that side of the bank of the river. 6 And one said to the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?
The man clothed in linen is the same man seen by Daniel at the beginning of this vision as recorded in Daniel 10:5. This writer stated that this man was an angel of God manifesting in the form of a man, but that others thought this man was the LORD Jesus Christ as the description is similar to that of Jesus in the first chapter of the book of Revelation, and because this man was “upon the waters” and Jesus walked on water as recorded in the Gospel accounts. You decide. The question being asked was a question of time. The question was not, “How long shall it be to the end of the world and of time?” The question was asking when the end of the events prophesied would come. The angels knew Daniel would have normal curiosity and the need to have a specific time given to him, so they voiced the question that he was undoubtedly thinking in his head.
Verse 7 And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.
A time, times and an half means 1 plus 2 plus 1/2 = 3 1/2 years. This is not in reference to the Scofield end time doctrine. In scripture, this 3 1/2 years reference is only associated with the ministry of the LORD Jesus Christ. Hundreds of years before Jesus walked on the Earth, this reference or metaphor was given by His holy angels or messengers. The “him that liveth for ever” is Jesus. “The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” Revelation 4:10-11 “And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein that there should be time not longer:” Revelation 10:6 So if the man clothed in linen raised both hand towards heaven and swore by the LORD Jesus Christ, perhaps this substantiates this writer’s opinion that this man is an angel manifesting in the form of a man.
So what is verse 7 above saying? In answer to the question regarding how long it will be until the end of all the things spoken in the prophecy, the angel states that after the ministry of Jesus (3 1/2 years, him that liveth for ever) the scattering of the power of the holy people (the nation Israel/Judah in 70 AD) shall be the finish of “these things”.
Verses 8-10 And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things? 9 And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. 10 Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.
Daniel did not understand what he had been told, so he asked the question which the angel had just answered. The Hebrew phrase translated as “closed up and sealed” is “catham” and it means to stop up, shut up or keep closed. Daniel was not to have this question answered, and God would reveal it to His people at the right time in history. And the wicked would not understand.
Verses 11-13 And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. 12 Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days. 13 But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days. (Daniel 12)
Remember who took the daily sacrifice away – Jesus by His death on the cross for all sins. Remember what the abomination that maketh desolate was – the killing of God’s prophets and the rejection of His Word, the last prophet who’s words were rejected and who was killed by the Jews being Steven, as recorded in the book of Acts.
Two numbers are given here: 1290 days and 1335 days. This can be confusing. Jesus’ death occurred in the middle of the 70th week (see Daniel chapter 9), 3 1/2 years after He started His ministry. At the end of the 70th week, the physical nation of Israel came to an end and spiritual Israel, the Church, came into being. Persecution of the Church took place, mainly by Saul of Tarsus who, when converted, became the Apostle Paul. His persecution lasted 45 days during which he made havoc of the Church, causing it to be scattered abroad and the Gospel to be preached outside of Jerusalem and Judea. The difference between the numbers above is 45, the exact number of days the persecution by Saul lasted. Therefore, those that “waiteth” would see the persecution stop and the Church flourish. Finally, Daniel was assured that he would have rest and stand before the LORD when his time on Earth of over.